Protect Your Privacy And Your Identity
David Christianson, CFP, R.F.P., TEP
Here is my semi-annual reminder to be diligent in protecting your personal information at all times, to avoid becoming a victim of identity theft and unauthorized use of your credit and your money.
I don’t want to be alarmist here. This is not a new warning that arises just from the increased use of online shopping and banking. Things were actually scarier to me when every restaurant and retail store kept a carbon copy of our credit card numbers and signatures each time we used our plastic for a purchase.
Even if every clerk or server to whom I had ever handed my card was honest, any con man going through the trash could find all of the information needed to rack up a hefty bill on my card.
Now, there have been many improvements. There are almost no carbon copies and only the last four digits of the cards are printed on the credit receipt. There is no copy of your signature floating around; only the original, which we expect the establishment to guard carefully, as this is their evidence of payment.
As well, the credit card companies themselves are getting very good at monitoring card use. I've had several calls over recent years when traveling, asking if it was really me using the card. It has gotten to the point where we suggest that our clients advise their credit card companies ahead of time, when they will be traveling outside the country.
Most merchants now require the three-digit PIN found on the back of your card for your online and telephone purchases.
I have finally become a convert to online banking, after years of prompting from my business partner, Sheril. I now love paying bills without having to write a cheque or make my way to my branch. The security protection and password protocol my bank uses seems quite impregnable, giving me a bit of comfort.
However, that doesn't mean that any of us, whether we use online banking or not, are immune to electronic theft. Review your statements and transaction confirmations carefully, to catch unauthorized movements.
A friend of mine recently received a confirmation of a withdrawal from a mutual fund, which he had not made. He contacted the bank, who said it was an online transfer, but to an account in another city. The bank quickly reimbursed my friend for his loss, but only because he noticed it and investigated.
Here's the irony; he does not even have online access on any of his accounts. A bank employee had "made a mistake," and had since been "reassigned." So it seems, such an incident can happen to anyone, no matter how careful you are about protecting passwords.
That brings us to the point of this column - protect your identity, your social insurance number, your account numbers, your PINs and your passwords, as if they were large amounts of cash you are carrying around.
I had a myocardial infarction last week when I walked by a friend’s computer, which had a sticky note near it specifying the account number, password and the name of his bank. Let’s just say we had a little talk.
Anyone who has an e-mail account has to be on constant alert for “phishing,” the process of e-mailing you an official-looking request for you to log on to an official-looking bank website and confirm your username and password, or other personal information, in order to "protect against a suspected security breach," or other bogus reason.
Hear this - no legitimate bank or a merchant (including eBay and PayPal) will ever e-mail you and ask you to give them your personal information or password. Don't do it.
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This article originally appeared in the Winnipeg Free Press on Friday, November, 16, 2007
David Christianson is a fee-only financial planner and investment counsel with Wellington West Total Wealth Management Inc. His column, ‘Dollars & Sense’ appears Fridays in the Winnipeg Free Press.